About 10% of Americans Don’t Pay Attention to Politics; Who Are They?

Pew describes that segment of the population as “bystanders.” Some 73% of them say they aren’t interested in government and politics and 66% say they aren’t interested in business and finance. Health, science and celebrities top their interests. About 64% of bystanders answered favorably when asked about their interest in celebrities and entertainment compared with only 46% of the general American public sharing the same opinion.

ZUMAPRESS.com

Young people, Hispanics and people with only high-school education or less are overrepresented within the bystanders’ category, according to Pew. Hispanics represent only 13% of Americans but they make 32% of the politically disengaged.

While the politically disengaged population encompasses different age groups, those between 18 and 49 represent the overwhelming majority. For instance, 38% of bystanders are between 18 and 29 years old while only 22% of the American population belongs to the same age segment. The relative youth of the group could explain why 35% of bystanders would call themselves “video or computer gamers” compared with only 21% of the general American population.

Bystanders also tend to be less educated, as 67% of the group has a high school education or less, compared with 40% of the general American population. Only 11% of bystanders hold a college degree or higher.

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